The question a lot of people ask me when I say we enjoyed a long weekend in Macedonia earlier this year was ‘Where is Macedonia?’. Well, it’s a landlocked country with Kosovo to the northeast, Bulgaria to the east, Greece to the South, Albania to the west and Serbia to the north. It’s in the Balkan Peninsula and was part of former Yugoslavia before it declared independence in 1991. You can check it out on a map, here.
Skopje (pronounced Skop-yeh) is the capital and, as you may know, is where Mother Teresa is from.
We had an amazing time! We journeyed there because my Mother-in-law is originally from Skopje and we went back to visit family. They were so wonderful, warm and welcoming and ploughed us with amazing food and drink until we just about popped.
Skopje town centre is part-modern, part-historic and has some incredible architecture on show. The territory of Skopje has been inhabited since at least 4000 BC and remains of these settlements have been found within the old Fortress that overlooks the city centre. One thing to mention is that Skopje has the largest cross in the world that sits atop of Vodno mountain, called the Millenium Cross and was constructed to serve as a memorial of 2,000 years of Christianity in Macedonia and the world. The views from the cross are incredible!
One noticeable thing about Skopje town centre is the abundance of statues and monuments. In 2010, the ‘Skopje 2014’ project was created and €500 million was injected into the budget to pay for said statues, monuments, fountains, bridges etc. I’m not talking a few, I’m talking what seems like one hundred…all in a small area. I think it might be idol overkill.
**note for interiors addicts** If you are after a beautiful, hand made ikat rug (at a cost of about 10% of what you’d pay here), head to the Turkish Bazaar in the old town! Honestly, you’ll never buy a rug in London again.
If you want to bring a bit of Skopje into your place, check out the items above!
Lx
1. Bushwick white and black trolley table, Abigail Ahern | 2. Silk Ikat cushion, sofa.com | 3. Warm white rope light, Lights 4 Fun | 4. Kastehelmi Tea light bowl, Royal Design | 5. Craven cottage plaster model, Chisel and Mouse